COLUMBIA CENTRAL 22, SODDY-DAISY 5Game 1: Columbia Central, 7-1Highlights: CC – Briana Donovan 194, Chrystan Lyle 179, Tajmah Williams 167, Alisha Scott 166, Katie Brooks 164, Tiffany Brooks 137. SD – Niki Bell 164, Kim Lacey 145, Kylee Saunders 144, Kayla Bleil 139, Shelby Melitus 132.Game 2: Columbia Central, 6-2Highlights: CC – K. Brooks 228, T. Brooks 194, Lyle 193, Williams 154, Donovan 136, Scott 132. SD – Saunders 171, Bell 158, Melitus 134, Bleil 134, Lacey 131.Game 3: Columbia Central, 6-2Highlights: CC – T. Brooks 224, Lyle 212, Lynzie Beeuman 180, Bethany Metcalf 158, Rachael Lunn 153, Taylor Pool 148. SD – Saunders 178, Bleil 178, Bell 162, Brianna Baugh 139, Lacey 138.Total pins (3 pts.): Columbia, 3,123-2,603.
Coming off his girls’ team’s only loss of the season, Columbia Central bowling coach Randy Cook felt confident Saturday in the sectional against Soddy-Daisy at Holiday Bowl Hixson.
Cook has the only two girls in the state with plus-200 game averages for the season, and the Lady Lions had beaten Soddy-Daisy in Columbia back in December.
Still, they surprised him with the margin of their 22-5 win Saturday.
“I thought it would be a lot closer than it was,” Cook said. “But our girls have been practicing hard, and they want a chance at payback against Smyrna.”
Smyrna, which won Region 4 by downing the Lady Lions on Wednesday, beat Walker Valley at the Smyrna Bowling Center, site of the Jan. 27-29 state tournament.
In contrast to Soddy-Daisy, Columbia Central (14-1) has three seniors, and junior Chrystan Lyle had a 203 for the best girls’ average in the state, followed closely by senior teammate Tiffany Brooks. The Lady Trojans have no seniors, and four of them had not bowled competitively before this season.
One of those newbies, Kayla Bleil, edged Brooks for Soddy-Daisy’s only point in the first game, and she matched Kylee Saunders’ team-high 178 in game three but went against Brooks’ 224.
Katie Brooks had a 228 in game two for Columbia, and Lyle closed with a 193 and a 212.
Sophomore Saunders and junior Niki Bell, each of whom will be returning to the individual state tournament, had two wins each for Soddy-Daisy (15-4), and Bell lost by only three pins in game one.
“I need to pick it up before the state — I need to work on picking up spares,” Bell said, “but I am so proud of the girls on our team. We had three girls back from last year and added a bunch of new girls, and they worked their butts off.”
Said coach David O’Malley Sr., whose boys’ team will host LaVergne in another sectional at Holiday Hixson at 2 p.m. Monday: “Some of these girls couldn’t break 50 when they started, and now their averages are close to 140. They’ll probably add another 15 pins or so by next year.
“Getting this far has been amazing, really. I think we’ll be a force to be reckoned with next year.”
A Lady Trojans team has not been to the state tournament since 2008, but the Soddy-Daisy boys were Division I runners-up last year and have a host of seniors and other veterans. Two of the Trojans, Matt Lyon and Kaleb Langston, are among the three state Mr. Bowling finalists, and Lyon has won the award the last two years.